Senate Operations Center Watch Officer #1221

Target Hiring Range: $126,372-$140,000

Department: Office of Security, Emergency Preparedness, and Continuity Posting Date Range: 1/28/2025-2/11/2025 Pay Grade Range: $126372-$175868

Work Hours: Rotating Shifts.

FLSA Status: Exempt

Remote Work Status: Hybrid

Hybrid Schedule: Ad hoc telework authorized based upon mission requirements and Senate session status.

All remote or hybrid work arrangements must be performed from within the continental United States, subject to Sergeant at Arms approval.

This vacancy announcement closes at 7pm EST. Late applications will not be accepted.

Job Description

JOB OVERVIEW

The Target Salary Range for this position is: $126,372-$140,000

The Senate Sergeant at Arms is seeking a Watch Officer for the Senate Operations Center skilled in analyzing and processing information from diverse sources to provide situational awareness and incident management updates. Key responsibilities include preparing and delivering briefings, reports, and After-Action Reviews to support clear communication and decision-making during critical incidents. The role involves monitoring events that could impact Senate personnel, facilities, and operations, while collaborating with stakeholders to mitigate risks. Applicants should have 3-5 years of relevant experience in an operations center or related field, with a focus on incident management and information sharing, and must qualify for a Top-Secret security clearance.

Key Accountabilities/Essential Job Duties

Obtains, analyzes, and processes information to determine what is pertinent to the event/incident and the stakeholders receiving the information; identify information shortfalls, critical issues, and sources for obtaining the required information. Maintains situational awareness of planned or unplanned events and incidents that may affect the personnel, facilities, or business of the United States Senate. Acts in the SAA’s best interest during any shift, takes responsibility over the watch during all hours, serves as the point of contact for After Action Reports, passes relevant and important information up the chain of command, ensures equipment and systems are in working order, and ensures adequate coverage of shift operations with qualified/trained personnel. Coordinates with other Command, Operations, and Fusion centers and designated stakeholders for clarifying information on potential impacts to Senate Members, staff, facilities, and operations. Develops and delivers, as directed, briefings to Senior Staff on the current Senate operational environment. Collects and analyzes information from a variety of sources, information feeds and contacts thereby developing Senate - specific situational awareness used in standard and specialized reports, summaries and briefings for the SOC, senior Senate Officers, and staff as directed. Other duties as assigned.

JOB SPECIFICATIONS

Required Education

Work requires a bachelor’s degree in criminal justices, homeland security, emergency management

Other Duties/ Responsibilities

• Provides emergency/crisis support and is subject to recall to the Senate Operations Center primary location, an alternate Continuity of Government facility, or telework site during emergency operational support conditions, training, or exercises. Such incidents may require the employee to work extended hours and days outside the normal work schedule
  
  

Required Work Experience

• 3-5 years.
  
  

Required Special Skills/ Knowledge

• Ability to remain calm and provide accurate details during stressful situations.
• Skill and ability to effectively communicate verbally and in writing with a wide variety of personnel through various methods for the purposes of receiving, reporting, and coordinating information and communication plus providing input or revising guidance and procedures.
• Skill to recognize critical, time sensitive information from the flow of routine information and to take immediate action to alert appropriate personnel.
• Knowledge of the relationships between Federal, State, local, territorial, and tribal law enforcement, intelligence, and emergency services operations.
• Knowledge of a wide range of crisis, incident management, and security concepts, principles, and practices to independently review and analyze related requests for information, incidents, and notifications.
• Knowledge of principles and current planning methods for continuity and business recovery operations, and emergency management.
• Knowledge of analytical skills in the area of open-source searches.
• Knowledge of using a Common Operating Picture in an incident-based operations center environment.
• Ability to develop effective working relationships with Senate staff, local, state, and federal law enforcement and security agencies.
• Ability to exercise tact and discretion with others regarding sensitive and confidential issues.
• Ability to analyze difficult and complex issues and make recommendations for action.
• Ability to conduct research and prepare analyses and reports.
• Ability to obtain Incident Command Systems (ICS)-100, 200, 700, and 800.
  
  

As part of our hiring process, we may conduct a skills assessment to better understand an applicant’s proficiency in key areas relevant to the role.

Working Conditions

• Since this position requires onsite presence in support of the U.S. Senate when in session, this position requires the employee to be available and prepared to work during government shutdowns, in inclement weather, on holidays, and during late night, overnight, and weekend sessions. In the context of government furloughs, this position is considered excepted.
• This position directly supports essential services of the U.S. Senate. As such, this position requires the employee be available and prepared to work during government shutdowns, in inclement weather, on holidays, weekends, and during late nights to ensure essential services to the Senate continue without interruption. In the context of government furloughs, this position is considered excepted.
• No exceptional physical demands.
  
  

Security Clearance

• This position requires that the applicant obtain and maintain a Top-Secret U.S. Government security clearance.
• Applicants must be U.S. citizens in order for the SAA to submit your application for a security clearance.
  
  

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT

To be employed by a Senate employing office in a paid position in the continental United States an individual must:

• Be a U.S. citizen;
• Be lawfully admitted for permanent residence and seeking citizenship as outlined in 8 U.S.C.
• 1324b(a)(3)(B);
• Be (i) admitted as a refugee under 8 U.S.C.
• 1157 or granted asylum under 8 U.S.C.
• 1158 and (ii) have filed a declaration of intention to become a lawful permanent resident and then a citizen when eligible; or
• Owe allegiance to the U.S. (i.e., qualify as a non-citizen U.S. national under federal law).
  
  

Employment is contingent on background / security investigation results.

Benefits At-a-glance

The SAA provides a highly competitive benefits package for all SAA staff. Our benefits extend beyond health care coverage to help provide employees with student loan reimbursement, professional development, transportation subsidy, TSP/retirement savings, access to our Employee Assistance Program, and more! For more information regarding SAA’s benefits, please visit https://sen.gov/OPPW .

ACCOMMODATIONS

As an Equal Opportunity Employer, the SAA is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. If you are interested in applying for employment with SAA and need special assistance or an accommodation to complete the application process, please submit your request to employment@saa.senate.gov email with “Accommodation” in the subject line.

VOLUNTARY SELF-IDENTIFICATION FOR VETERANS' PREFERENCE

If you are identifying as veterans' preference eligible under the VEOA, please use this link to complete your application for Veterans' Preference AFTER you apply for this position. The link will also be available on the "Thank You" page after you have submitted your job application.

Candidates only need to apply one time for veterans’ preference to be considered for all future veterans’ preference positions within the Senate Sergeant at Arms.

• All supporting documents must ONLY be provided within the Veterans’ Preference Application and within the stated deadline of the job announcement.
• Late applications for veterans’ preference will not be considered.
• Documentation to obtain veterans’ preference will not be considered if attached to the job application.
• If you need to revise or resubmit your Application for Veterans' Preference/documents, please withdraw your previous Application for Veterans' Preference and resubmit. If you require assistance, please email employment@saa.senate.gov .
• To view additional information regarding the VEOA, please click here .
  
  

An applicant who declines to self-identify as a disabled veteran and/or to provide information and documentation regarding his/her disabled veteran’s status will not be subjected to an adverse employment action, but the individual may be ruled ineligible for veterans’ preference.